Wire gate fastener



Dec. 11, 1956 o. D. MCKINNEY 2,773,714

WIRE GATE FASTENER Filed Dec. 22, 1954 20 I Oliver 0. McKinney L g I I n INVNTOR.

United States Patent" '0 WIRE GATE FASTENER Oliver D. McKinney, Leedey, Okla. Application December 22, 1954, Serial No. 476,918

3 Claims. (Cl. 292-246) This invention relates to a gate fastening device for retaining a gate post adjacent a fence post with the gate in closed position wherein the gate is constructed of flexible wire members which permits movement of the gate post in substantially any direction.

An object of this invention is to provide a fastening device for engaging a gate post of a wire gate for retaining the gate post adjacent the fence post for retaining the gate in closed position wherein the fastening device is easily and quickly attached to the gate post and detached therefrom for manipulation of the gate post.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a gate post fastening device for use on a wire gate that includes a flexible chain having a ring on each end thereof wherein the chain passes over a horizontally disposed pulley that is provided with a housing having notches that will engage the chain and lock the chain in adjusted position when a free end of the chain is dropped to a depending or vertical position so that the notch will engage the links of the chain.

Yet another important object of the present invention is to provide a fastening device conformable to the preceding objects wherein either of the rings may be positioned over the upper end of the gate post and the other of the rings will then form a handle for urging the gate post towards the fence post, thereby providing an efiicient and effective gate post fastening device.

Other important objects of the present invention will reside in its simplicity of construction, ease of operation, versatile utility, its adaptation for its purposes and its relatively inexpensive manufacture.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the gate post fastening device of the present invention in use for holding a gate post adjacent a fence post in spaced parallel relation;

Figure 2 is a top plan sectional view taken substantially along the upper surface of the horizontally disposed pulley showing the construction of the pulley together with the structure of the housing and the notches formed by the housing which are substantially tangential to opposite side edges of the pulley; and

Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the pulley, housing and mounting bracket of the present invention with a portion of the pulley being broken away showing the construction thereof.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, it will be seen that the numeral generally designates the gate post fastening device of the present invention for attachment to a fence post 12 that has wire members 14 attached thereto for securing a gate post 16 adjacent the fence post 12 wherein the gate post 16 also is provided with flexible wire fence members 18 secured thereto. The wire members 14 and 18 may be of any well known construction, although barbed wire is utilized for illustrating the present invention. Normally, a U-shaped member 20 is provided with its free ends secured to the fence post 12 adjacent the bottom thereof with fastening members 22 wherein the bight portion 24 of the U-shaped member 20 receives the lower end of the gate post 16. The gate post fastener 10 of the present invention is secured to the upper end of the fence post 12 and engages the upper end of the gate post 16 for retaining the gate post 16 in vertical relation and adjacent the fence post 12.

Referring now specifically to Figures 2 and 3, it will be seen that the fastening device 10 includes a generally U-shaped housing member 26 having top and bottom members 28 and 30 with a bolt '32 extending therethrough for journaling a pulley 34 thereon. A bracket 36 is integrally formed with the housing 26 for attachment to the fence post 12 with fastening members 38. The housing 26 is provided with a pair of projections 40 and 42 on the free ends thereof which generally are tangential to the opposite edges of the pulley 34. The projections 40 and 42 form notches 44 and 46 for engaging the links of a flexible chain '48 that is provided with ring members '50 and 52 on the free ends thereof. The ring members 50 and 52 are of a size to fit over the upper end of the gate post 16 and when the gate post 16 is being closed, the ring 50 is positioned over the upper end thereof and the ring 52 then forms a handle for pulling the chain 48 taut and moving the gate post 16 to the position illustrated in Figure 1. When the gate post 16 is moved to the desired position, the handle 52 is dropped, thereby moving the chain 48 to a vertical position wherein the notch 44 will engage the links of the chain 48, thereby locking the chain in adjusted position for securing the gate post 16 in the desired relation. It will be seen that either of the rings 50 or 52 may be utilized and that either of the notches 44 or 46 will form a lock for the chain 48, and since the housing 26 and the pulley 34 are horizontally disposed, the chain 48 will be automatically locked in position by the notches 44 and 46 when the ring on the free end of the chain 48 is released. It will be seen that the fastening device 10 of the present invention forms an easily and quickly operated fastening device for retaining a gate post 16 in closed position. The'device of the present invention is especially useful in conjunction with wire gates wherein the gate post 16 is highly unstable and relatively hard to position in closed relation.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. The combination of a gate post adjacent a fence post with a locking device, said device comprising a pulley, a housing surrounding a major portion of the pulley, a bracket on said housing for securing the housing and pulley to the fence post in a horizontal plane, a pair of projections on said housing, said projections extending substantially tangential to said pulley thereby forming with portions of the periphery of said pulley notches adjacent opposite edges of said housing, a flexible chain on said pulley, a ring on each of the ends of said chain, one of said rings adapted to be selectively positioned over the upper end of the gate post and the other of said rings adapted to be pulled for pulling the gate post towards the fence post said other of said rings assuming a depending relation to the housing and automatically positioning the chain in one of said notches thereby locking the chain in adjusted position. a

2. For use with a gate post adjacent to a fence post, a locking device comprising a pulley, a housing extending around a portion of said pulley, means mounting said housing'on one of said posts for disposition adjacent to the other of said post and in-such position that said housing and said pulley are generally horizontal, a projection extending from said housing and arranged substantially tangentially to said pulley, said projection with a part of the periphery of said pulley constituting a notch, a chain havingoneend adapted to be secured to the post opposite to the post having said housing attached to it,

said chain being entrained around said pulley and engagea v 4 able in said notch with an extremity to lock said chain releasablyin the locking notch by dropping downwardly in a generally vertical plane and automatically engaging the notch. V

3. The device of claim 2 wherein said chain has two ends, each of the ends of said chain having a ring onit, and either of said rings being engageable with one of said posts.

References Cited in thefile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 318,314 Skinner May 19, 1,885 2,592,722 Noll Apr. 15, 1952 

